Ahle Sunnat threatens to besiege Saudi Embassy

A CorrespondentChittagong: Demanding clarification within 48 hours from the Saudi Embassy in Dhaka on a reported proposal to destroy the tomb (rawja) of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) and bury His remains in an unmarked grave, Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat on Wednesday threatened to lay a siege to the Saudi mission if the demand goes unheeded.Mosaheb Uddin Bakhtiar, member secretary of Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat Coordination Committee, came up with the threat at a press conference at Chittagong Press Club.Mosaheb said they will lay a siege to the Saudi Embassy on Sunday if it fails to give a clear explanation of the reported proposal of the ‘Wahabi’ Saudi government within the deadline.He also urged all Sunni organizations and institutions to form human chains and hold protest rallies across the country on Thursday.The Ahle Sunnat leader also called upon all imams and khatibs of all mosques to protest the proposal of the Saudi government in khutba (sermons) during Jum’a prayers on Fridays.A Saudi scholar proposed destroying the tomb of Prophet Muhammad, Islam's second-holiest site, and removing His remains to an anonymous grave, sparking a controversy.The plans, according to the Independent of the UK, have been circulating the al-Masjid al-Nabawi mosque in Medina which houses the Prophet’s remains under the Green Dome.The document calls for the demolition of chambers around Muhammad’s grave and the removal of his remains to the nearby al-Baqi graveyard, where they would be anonymously interred without a headstone.Born in 570 AD, the Prophet Muhammad is believed by Muslims to be the last Prophet of the Almighty Allah sent to mankind who delivered the religion's final revelation.His resting place in Medina, Saudi Arabia is visited by millions of Muslims every year and is seen as the second holiest site after the Kaaba, the famous black cubed building in Makkah.But it has recently emerged that a Saudi academic has put forward contentious plans to have the Prophet's remains moved from the tomb over fears by some scholars that the site is leading to idolatry.The plans, brought to light by a Saudi academic who has exposed and criticized the destruction of holy places and artifacts in Makkah call for the destruction of chambers around the Prophet’s grave which are particularly venerated by Shia Muslims.The formal custodian of the mosque is Saudi Arabia’s ageing monarch King Abdullah.